Reduce Your Exposure to Pesticides

Conventional food production makes wide use of pesticides which can pollute water and the environment. What many people don’t realise is that over 320 pesticides can be routinely used in non-organic farming and these are often present in non-organic food. Some of them remain in the food you eat, despite washing and cooking. Some studies suggest pesticides could be on one in three non-organic foods. In contrast, you rarely find pesticides in organic food.

In fact, the best way to reduce your exposure to pesticides in all food is to buy organic. Certified organic food, including all fruit and vegetables, processed food, dairy and meat products will overall contain fewer pesticides.

Organic farming reduces disruption to the natural environment. By rotating crops and selecting crop varieties with a natural resistance to particular pests and diseases, organic farmers are able to reduce or avoid disease problems and the need to control them with chemical inputs.

There is strong evidence that neonicotinoid pesticides are involved in the decline of bees, and that they are impacting other species such as birds, earthworms and aquatic insects too. The Soil Association campaigns to tackle these problems and to work with all farmers to help save our precious wildlife.

Glyphosate is one of three pesticides regularly found in routine testing of British bread, appearing in up to 30% of samples tested by the Defra committee on Pesticide Residues in Food. Help us remove glyphosate from UK bread for good.